AN: Shorter chapter this time, as I want to dedicate next chapter to Kallen.

Samurai Seven: Carine getting executed? That's probably not going to happen. Though, with the Dasko issue being pressed, she's got a good way out of this mess.

Guests: Kidnapping Cecile and Lloyd to protect them is... certainly an approach. Though, I don't think they'd appreciate being abruptly taken by the enemy, regardless of good intent.

Guest: Clara's Geass orders can still activate, it's just her Geass itself that she has trouble with. The OT Lelouch, NT Suzaku, and NT Kallen scene will happen after this, as OT Kallen will need a break after this battle. And so will NT Lelouch.

Guest(2): I kind of figured as much. Even though it wasn't verbally stated, I found it odd that Charles traveled all the way to Kamine Island to use the thought elevator there, despite having dozens more at his disposal. But, I'm glad there's some confirmation.

Chapter 71: To Run

Rai and Mario clashed blades once more, sending a shockwave that shook the ground beneath them. They separated once more, chasing each other through the forest. In an attempt to shake off his opponent, the silver-haired boy cut a row of trees in half with his lance, and sent them flying toward his opponent with several swift kicks. In response, the black-haired boy ducked the first few trees, before cutting the last one in half, only to be left open to a swift kick in his gut.

The Sougetsu was sent flying back, crashing through a tree before coming to a stop. That was when it was instantly forced to block an incoming slash harken, as the Club spun through the air, mimicking Suzaku's specialty spin kick. Mario groaned in pain as the attack made contact with his shoulder, knocking him to the side. "Damn it. Way too fast." he muttered while taking a step back, narrowly dodging Rai as he tried to curb stomp him. "Rai. A silver-haired boy who's a quick learner." Mario blocked an attack, before countering with a jab. Of course, his opponent easily moved out of the way, "Due to his body structure being similar to that of Suzaku Kururugi's, he takes many plays out of the boy's playbook. For instance, his spinning kick."

Just as he recited those lines from the report he memorized a day prior, Rai tried to hit him with a spinning kick. Though, it failed to do any damage, as Mario effortlessly ducked the strike, and grabbed the leg midair, before slamming him into the ground. The silver-haired boy groaned in pain as he kicked the Sougetsu away, "Has he adapted to my fighting style? That's new." he used a tree as cover, disappearing from sight briefly.

"Due to his speed, he often tries to overwhelm is opponents with continuous surprise attacks, rather than slow, strong strikes." Mario turned around, catching Rai's fist just as he got close. Then, he brought up his Sougetsu to slash the arm, only to be forced to retreat, as his opponent's slash harkens threatened a game over. "Yeah. I think I've got you figured out." the black-haired boy told himself while parrying a slash from his opponent's lance.

Suddenly, their duel turned on its head, as Mario spun his Naginata several times, before delivering a heavy blow to Rai's center, which he luckily blocked with his lance. Though, the strength of this strike caused him to be lifted slightly, which left him with little to no defensive options. The Sougetsu then brought its weapon back, before slamming it down for an overhead slash, which was also blocked, but the force from the strike caused the Club to be planted into the ground. "Gotta get out of here." Rai aimed his slash harkens at his opponent's arms, hoping to force him away, only for his weapons to get caught with one hand swipe.

"Every time you get pressured, you use those slash harkens to gain ground." Mario crushed the harkens in his hand, "Not anymore." he delivered a kick to his opponent's center, causing him to tumble away. Though, before he could follow up, Rai planted his lance into the ground, and used it to spring himself forward, kicking the Sougetsu in the gut.

The black-haired boy crashed through a tree, causing him to let go of his Naginata, leaving everything up to hand-to-hand. And this was an area the silver-haired boy wouldn't relent in.

Mario stood up, and put his arms together, blocking a front kick from his opponent, before taking a step back, weaving a swift right hook. Using this opportunity, he grabbed the arm, forcing it in place, and sending a right jab into Rai's chest. The silver-haired boy practically absorbed the punch, using the momentum to put his left hand on the ground, and send a kick into his opponent's head. Then, he did a backflip, hitting his opponent's chin with the heel of his left foot.

"This is good!" Mario smiled while planting his feet, cocking his fist back, "I was right to take up those martial arts courses, and focus on grappling over everything else." Rai brought his fist to his side, and hovered his hand over it, almost like he was charging up an attack. Though, the real purpose of this stance was so he could put all of his weight into this punch, "Because of my training, in terms of hand-to-hand combat…" they launched their fist forth simultaneously, hitting each other in a cross-counter, "We're equal!"

Both Knightmares were sent flying back, though they each soon recovered, and rushed toward back into the fight. Mario donned as smile as he blocked Rai's punch with an elbow, before grabbing his arm, and tossing him into a tree. Though, it wasn't enough force to break the lush flora. Instead, it kept the Club in place for the Sougetsu to send a devastating front kick to its chest, shattering the front plates.

Rai crashed through the tree and stood up, "Crap. He's gotten better." he strafed right, hoping to escape from sight once again. Though, Mario surprisingly kept up, cutting him off at the pass, and sending out a heavy right hook, intending to end the fight there. Luckily, the Club used its momentum to slide under his strike, before grabbing his leg, and putting him into a submission pin, where he continually twisted the Sougetsu's left leg.

Mario grunted while adjusting his slash harken to aim at a tree. He fired it, and caused himself to be dragged away, bringing his opponent with him. Just before he crashed into the tree, released the harken, and lifted his left leg as hard as he could, sending the Club back-first into the tree.

Rai crashed through the tree and back into the open plain, where Suzaku and Kallen fought in the background. His screen blared red as he turned off unnecessary systems, rerouting power to his arms and legs. "I'm getting owned right now!"

Suddenly, he did a backflip, narrowly dodging Mario as he attempted a curb stomp. Rai slid forward using his landspinners, and sent a punch into the Sougetsu's gut, lifting it slightly. Then, he followed up by grabbing it head, dragging it across the dirt with a smile, shaking off the beating he took in the process.

Mario couldn't believe it as he was sent flying across the battlefield. How could things change so fast? One second he was in control, and now he was on the back foot. He dodged a strike aimed for his face, only to be trapped in place as the Club stepped on his leg. After that, it grabbed his arm, and ripped it off in a single motion. Despite this, the black-haired boy didn't falter. Instead, he used this moment to grab Rai by the arm, and send him crashing into the dirt, where he quickly followed up by stomping his back, causing the silver-haired boy to cry in pain.

Before a second kick could take effect, the Club rolled out of the way, standing up battered and bruised, "One more hit… I have to end this in one more hit." Rai told himself as his systems blared, "Gotta make it count."

Mario thought much the same, so as his opponent approached, preparing their fist, he did the same, "I just need one more. I don't have to get fancy. I just have to hit him hard enough to overload the Club."

With a winning image in mind, both boys sent their fist forward. Only… Rai made sure to take full advantage of his two arms, using his left to deflect Mario's right, preventing his attack from landing. Meanwhile, his right hand was free to travel without issue, assuring victory for the Knight, "Once I take this guy out, I'll get my VARIS, and support Suzaku from-"

Before he could finish his sentence, both of his arms were severed with a shot from his opponent's slash harkens, allowing their fist to resume their normal trajectory, "Haha! I bet you didn't expect that!" Mario smiled as he finally outsmarted Rai. While Rai was an incredibly skilled pilot, and a quick learner, he wasn't going out and fighting the same quality opponents Mario was. It was due to being limited to a simulation, and Suzaku, that the silver-haired boy fell into a rhythm where he wasn't growing as a pilot, instead he was just going through the motions of fighting. It was because that Mario fought Britannian pilots regularly, and trained with Kallen, that he was able to surpass the prodigy. "Here's a little something from your playbook!" he shouted as his fist crashed through the Club's head, decapitating it, forcing the auto-eject to activate.

"Damn it! I'm sorry, Suzaku. You're on your own."

The White Knight rolled his eyes as he effortlessly pushed the red head back, "It's alright. We'll just have to kick up your training again."

The silver-haired boy looked down in shame as his pod safely landed within Britannian lines, "I'm sorry, Princess Euphemia. I failed you…"

Now, it was left to the dragons to duke it out.

Suzaku and Kallen separated from each other. The red head panted heavily while her opponent remained eerily calm despite who he was facing. "What is going on? I'm supposed to be better than him! So why? Why is he so calm, while I'm…" a bead of sweat hit her dashboard, "No. I can't think about that now. I just have to beat him. And Lelouch will be safe."

"Kallen." Suzaku called over a private channel, "Why are you so adamant in defending Lelouch?"

"Isn't that already obvious?" she snarled.

"It can't just be because you love him. No. There's something else… and I think it has to do with what Mao said on the roof."

Kallen's body stricken with fear as she whispered, "N-no… please don't…"

"His wording was… strange to say the least. 'Save the man you love', that indicates that something happened to Lelouch that was so bad, you felt the need to time travel."

"Shut up!" the red head rushed toward her opponent savagely, only to have her arm get parried by an MVS, then she was knocked away by a kick. "Please… don't fine out! You can't!"

Suzaku piled on the pressure, by slamming his MVS hard against Kallen's dagger, "Could he have also gone insane in your timeline and killed everyone?" he swiftly maneuvered his blade beneath hers, and shoved it into her chest. Though, before it could make contact, the red head grabbed it with her surger arm, using it at maximum output. With a smile, Suzaku let go of his blade, and kicked its handle, sliding it through the surger's grip, causing it to pierce the Guren.

"C-crap!" due to the MVS exploding, it did massive damage against Kallen, causing her chest to catch fire. She ignored the red alerts blaring on her screen, focusing only on Suzaku, and making him pay.

"Did you like that? I saw Gino do that against the Kallen of my timeline once. It nearly killed her, and it probably would've if Lelouch didn't force me to save her." the Knight explained while drawing his second MVS, "You know, I never understood why he had such an infatuation with you." he pushed forth once more. However, much to his surprise, for the first time ever, Kallen took a defensive stance, "I thought I figured it out, you know?" he fired his slash harkens at her, forcing her to deflect them with her dagger. Though, this only opened her shoulder to a stab from Suzaku. Luckily, she managed to barely move out of the way, and counter with her surger arm. But, this proved fruitless, as the Knight effortlessly ducked the strike, "You were the last one, that's why he chose to keep you around. Of course, C.C didn't care what Lelouch was doing, so long as she got what she wanted in the end. I think that angered him. She was unsympathetic. A witch." he drove his MVS into her foot, before kicking her away, ripping it off. "You would always be the last choice, because you loved Zero, not Lelouch!"

Kallen tumbled across the dirt. Recovering after a few rolls, "That's not true! I love Lelouch! I do!" she shouted with tears welling in her eyes, "And… he wouldn't choose my last…" she said that last part halfheartedly.

And Suzaku picked up on that, "Don't lie to me. You came to this timeline to win him over, didn't you? So tell me, who stole Lelouch's heart from you?" he began closing the distance, "Shirley?" the red head remained firm, "Milly?" he smiled as she kept her defense up, "C.C?" finally, Kallen's blade dropped slightly, "Seriously?" he shouted while clashing with her blade, "I didn't think she had a heart!"

Without her right foot, the Guren was pushed back significantly, almost falling over if it weren't for using its surger to brace itself. But, this left it open to an attack, which the Lancelot masterfully took advantage of by dropping, and slashing off it's leg in a pass-by. "Shut up…" she whispered weakly.

Suzaku tired to kick Kallen into the dirt, only for her to get away with her slash harken, "But what happened to Lelouch? Why did you come back to save him? That's the question I want answered." he spun his MVS, "He couldn't have gone insane. My C.C mostly dissociated from him when that happened." he gasped as the red head game to a stop, facing him with a strong gaze, "Is it possible… did he die?" With those words, memories of the past timeline flooded Kallen's mind, bringing up her failures, and amplifying her insecurities. Once again, Suzaku noticed, "No way!" he burst out into laughter, "You're telling me he actually died!?"

His laughter echoed throughout the red head's mind, as her only response was, "Stop… please… you don't understand. Lelouch died to-"

"I don't care." the Knight abruptly answered, "You couldn't win him over in your timeline, and you were so devastated by that fact, that you sacrificed the whole timeline just to win him over in another." he chuckled, "Wow. Maybe you're secretly the witch."

"Shut up! I'm doing this for-"

"The greater good?" Suzaku snickered, "You're doing this for yourself, Kallen Kozuki. You manipulated this Lelouch into loving you by appearing in his life earlier. Forcing him to fall in love with you through… whatever you did. How does it feel? You successfully manipulated the smartest man I know into loving you."

"That's not true!" Kallen cried as tears streamed down her face, "Lelouch… he loves me. I didn't force him to do anything!"

"Really? I wonder what'll happen if we brought your Lelouch into this timeline. Would he still choose you over C.C? Or would he immediately flock to her. Thanking you for your service and forcing you to return to just being his 'Knight'." Suzaku blitzed past the red head as her guard was down, cutting off the surger arm in a single swipe, "You know the truth. Lelouch won't ever love you. Hell, it took you being the last option for him to even sleep with you."
"Shut your mouth!" Kallen fired her slash harken, only for it to get caught, and crushed in a second. Then, he left arm followed the same fate as her surger, "It's not true… it can't be true…"

"But it is." the Knight kicked her to the ground, leaving the Guren in such a pathetic state, "You'll never be enough. To him, you're just a pawn. Like a well-placed Knight." he said, unknowingly echoing the Prince's words on the Ikaruga, "In the end, you've served your purpose, and you'll be tossed aside like all the rest."

"Shut your mouth." Kallen said in a bare whisper, "You coward…"

"I'm not the coward, Kallen." Suzaku answered coldly while picking up the Guren, "I'm not the one running from a future that I couldn't accept."

"That's bullshit, and you know it." the red head weakly protested.

"Is that so? In my timeline, I would've killed Lelouch, or died trying. Getting whatever I wanted either way. It's just that I was lucky enough to get a second chance. And I won't screw up this time. Not by a long shot." The Guren's lifeless body was carefully set on the ground, "Don't worry, Kallen. You'll see that I was right in the end. And if you ever want to join Britannia, which I know won't happen, but on the off chance that if you do, I'll fully endorse you, and make you my squire."

"Then you might as well kill me now." Kallen seethed, "Because I'll never work under, or beside you."
"That's not what my version of you said. But I digress." Before he could turn around, he was suddenly struck across the back by a revolving blade. That's when Mario rips Kallen's cockpit out of the Guren, and flees. Suzaku turns to pursue, but is knocked on his face when the red Knightmare explodes, sending shrapnel into the back of his leg. "Damn it…" he groaned while picking out the pieces.

"Mario!? What are you doing?"

"You're seriously questioning the guy who's saving you?" Mario retorted while heading into the canyon, with Suzaku hot on his heels. "Seriously? He's still chasing?"

The black-haired boy looked ahead, and saw a small position where the Glinda Knights were being held at, "Damn. These Black Knights sure are tough." Toto complained as a Black Knight Burai shot a few rounds, taking off the arm of a Glinda Sutherland.

"Pretty sure those are JLF troopers." Steiner pointed out, only to get his head clipped.

"It's a mix of both." Sokkia states as she sees the Sougetsu rush by their positions, "What the hell? Where'd that thing come from? It's not even showing up on my-" the Lancelot suddenly zooms by, "Suzaku Kururugi!"

Mario clenches his fist as the Knight passes by the Black Knight lines without attacking, "Crap. Why can't I shake him?"

"If I just follow this guy, he'll lead me to Lelouch." Suzaku smiled confidently as they rounded another corner, "My energy filler's low, so I have to make quick work of them. Not only that, but I've sustained some pretty bad damage. Maybe I shouldn't have chased after him like this…" though, he quickly parishes the thought, and pushed onward.

Tohdoh and the four Holy Swords watched as Rakshata made some quick repairs to the Maya's Sougetsu, "You should be resting, Ms. Chawla." he warned, "From what I've heard, you've broken a few ribs."

The Indian woman shook her head and said, "No. The care of my babies come first, especially the Guren . I just hope Kallen doesn't bang it up too bad. It'll take a few weeks to gain a replacement, and there's no telling how many missions will need the radiant wave surger."

"I'd relax." Nagisa said while sitting atop her Gekka, "Kozuki's one of the best pilots I've ever seen. I doubt anyone could beat her in a straight brawl."

Tohdoh's mind couldn't help but wonder to Suzaku, who effortlessly beat him at Yokota, "Why can't I shake that feeling?" he sighed as Maya's Sougetsu rang, "It's not that he's better than me that's the problem. It's something else… something… sinister. But what is it?"

"Uh oh." Maya muttered, "Um… so Mario's gonna be here soon."

"That's great news." Tamaki called, "I can't wait to hear how he kicked some Britannian-"

"But he's got company."
Everyone looked at her in awkward silence. That stayed true until Ohgi stepped forth, "What do you mean?"

"Well… Suzaku… he managed to beat Kallen." Everyone gasped, but before they could ask any questions, Maya continued, "Don't worry, Mario managed to retrieve Kallen and destroy the Guren. But, the Lancelot is hot on his tail."

Upon hearing the news, the Four Holy Swords boarded their Gekka's and prepared for battle. Meanwhile, Tohdoh got in his Burai, and stood in front, "Then we'll take care of him here and now!"

Maya did the same, but was warned by Rakshata, "Be careful. Those repairs I made… they're temporary. It's only so that you won't collapse while we're on our way back to the shop. If you take even one hit from the Lancelot, you'll still be toast."

"Don't worry, I'll be careful." the black-haired girl stepped forward, "Listen up, Tohdoh, Holy Swords. We're the last line of defense, and are the only ones who can stop Suzaku! We can't fail here!" she turned to the rest of the Black Knights, "Now that Mario and Kallen are coming, feel free to retreat further into the canyon. Meet with the retrieval group, and head to your hideouts."

In the distance, Mario leapt onto a wall, and rode it for a bit before returning to ground. "There he is!" Urabe shouted. That's when Suzaku rounded the corner with less grace as he crashed into the wall instead. But he managed to keep moving regardless. "Oh man… he's actually kind of scary…"

"Suck it up." Nagisa ordered, "It's up to us to defeat him, and, if possible, capture him!"

"Right!" the four holy swords rushed forth, leaving Maya and Tohdoh to guard the rear.

In a matter of seconds, the four swords passed Mario, then they quickly encircled Suzaku, "Spinning life or death formation!" Nagisa announced as she began moving in on the stationary Lancelot.
In response, the Knight leapt into the air, dodging the attack from all sides and hung onto the wall with his slash harkens, "That's attacks far too slow to damage anyone. They'd have to be actively disabled to get hit by that."

"Cocky punk!"

However, before the swords could readjust, Suzaku fired his harken at Nagisa, bisecting her in half, before hopping down to clash blades with Asahina. Though, it didn't last long, as the revolving blade snapped under the pressure of his MVS's down force, leading to Asahina's swift defeat. That's when Senba jumped in and clash blades with Suzaku, forcing him to stay in one place as Urabe came in with the assist, forcing the Knight to use his Blaze Luminous to block his attack. "Boring." he muttered before destroying both holy swords with his slash harkens.

Finally, he moved toward Tohdoh with only 5% power remaining. That's when Suzaku had to face the facts. He won't be able to capture Lelouch, not like this. He'll be lucky if he even gets out of the canyon like this. So, he decided against taking aggressive action, and retreated, hopefully reaching the Glinda line before he ran out of juice.

"Is… that it?" Maya asked as Kallen sat in her cockpit, curled up into a ball.

"I think so." the miracle worker answered as he approached his comrades, "Just in case, I'm getting out of here. If Suzaku comes back, we won't be able to beat him."

"We'll see you around." Mario stated, "Hopefully, sooner rather than later."

Tohdoh quickly grabbed the Holy Swords from their cockpits, and escorted them out of the canyon to the extraction point. Maya and Mario were about to join him too, but Kallen stopped them, "Lelouch."

"What?" Maya asked in a caring tone.

"Bring me to Lelouch!" the red head demanded while slamming her fist on the dashboard, "I want to see him!"

Mario turned to the black-haired girl and nodded, "Let's go find him. I… have some things I want to ask him myself."

His sister nodded, "Yeah. Hopefully… Kallen will be able to open up about that… thing we were talking about."

"Right… the thing."

Meanwhile, the red head was too busy drowning in her own thoughts to care about what Mario and Maya were referring to. She needed comfort. She needed Lelouch. And the sooner she sees him, the better.